“This is my country. The actions of this PMO belong in some other country. Maybe one described by George Orwell where an “Info Alert” could be a tool of propaganda and smear. This PMO spends more on “information officers” than any previous PMO. Talk about abuse of taxpayers’ dollars; this bunch spends $10 million/year in shadowy political operatives and “Info Alerts. This PMO does not belong in Canada.” —Elizabeth May

The following is a re-posting of a piece that originally appeared on Elizabeth May’s blog. Ms May is the Member of Parliament for Saanich-Gulf Islands and Leader of the Green Party. (Sub-headings and some links have been added)

Harper government hits a new ethical low… and there’s barely a murmur across the nation.

When I heard that ForestEthics, a group targeted in a Prime Minister’s Office memorandum as an “adversary” of the PMO agenda, had decided to split its activities so as to make advocacy a separate arm, I thought “how brave.” The fact that PMO senior staff had pressured the group’s main funder, Tides Canada, to stop supporting the conservation work of ForestEthics, (verified by the memo obtained through Access to Information), would, in itself, have been a shocking scandal even a decade ago. Now, it barely caused a murmur in a nation seemingly losing our sense of outrage in the face of suppression of dissent – like the proverbial warming frog in a toxic political stew.

Uncertain how to respond to Harper’s “new sanctions”, major environmental groups effectively silenced

It is increasingly clear that the chilling effect of the bully-boy tactic of threatening all non-government groups and all charities with as yet unspecified “new sanctions” (promised at p, 205 of the 2012 budget) is working to silence critics. Where I would expect a phalanx of Executive Directors of the country’s major national conservation and environmental groups blasting back with one voice at the unravelling of decades of environmental protections, there has been a fairly small roar from only the bravest. This is not intended as any criticism of my former colleagues. When you don’t know what the new rules will be, when you have an obligation to your organization to stay in the black and when money is scarce and threats abundant, it is hard to know how to respond.

ForestEthics has a proven track record of bravely standing up to forestry industry in its conservation work

Then there is ForestEthics. Valerie Langer – she of the Kennedy Lake blockade, putting herself in a precarious position chained to a log suspended out over open space, then rallying thousands to the burnt over clear-cuts of Clayoquot Sound over the summer of 1993 to halt the logging of the ancient coastal temperate rainforest, and she, my dear friend of many years – stood up bravely. Valerie has been working with ForestEthics for years. Far from the civil disobedience of the early 1990s, she and Forest Ethics had pioneered in market based campaigns, tackling catalogue giant Victoria’s Secret and developing a local economy through toy building with Heiltsuk First Nation.

ForestEthics had found ways to find consensus with the forest industry at the board room tables. ForestEthics is too effective for the Harper regime.Clayton Ruby has agreed to head up ForestEthics Advocacy – a new organization that will not seek any charitable dollars for its work. Ruby declared “what we need now is more advocacy for the environment, not less advocacy for the environment. We need more speech, not less speech.”

However, in the eyes of Harper’s Prime Minister’s Office, the cynical inference is that ForestEthics stands condemned by its restructuring

The announcement was barely made before the spin doctors of the Prime Minister’s Office issued the following “Info Alert”:

Canadian law has long restricted the generous tax advantages associated with charitable status to organizations that focus their energies on charitable activities – not politics. Unfortunately, some organizations have been using taxpayers’ generosity for their own political purposes.

In Economic Action Plan 2012, our Government announced that charities would be required to be more transparent and more accountable to Canadians when it comes to their activities.

But this was all too much for at least one radical organization who today announced the creation of a stand-alone group devoted entirely to political advocacy.

ForestEthics may be the first radical group to admit that their activities, for which they have collected tremendous financial advantages at the expense of Canadian taxpayers, were not charitable at all.

After all, legitimate organizations carrying out legitimate charitable activities would have no reason to do anything differently. From: Alerte-Info-Alert [mailto:Alerte-Info-Alert@pmo-cpm.gc.ca]

May’s sarcastic counter

Right you are. Only those with something to fear would be willing to stop being afraid. Only people with something to hide will object to the warrant-less access to their email address and phone numbers and ISP information. Right, only someone who is doing wrong will object to mandatory minimum sentences or pre-emptive arrest.

Environmental charities are facing endless Harper government harassment with threats of loss of charitable status

And when a conservation group, unsure how to speak in this Brave New World where the 10% legal advocacy by charities leads to endless harassment with threats of loss of charitable status, decides to voluntarily relinquish its charitable status, it will stand condemned by the PMO.

“This PMO does not belong in Canada”

This is my country. The actions of this PMO belong in some other country. Maybe one described by George Orwell where an “Info Alert” could be a tool of propaganda and smear. This PMO spends more on “information officers” than any previous PMO. Talk about abuse of taxpayers’ dollars; this bunch spends $10 million/year in shadowy political operatives and “Info Alerts.” This PMO does not belong in Canada.

MY COMMENT – With reference to May’s assertion that the PMO’s actions “barely caused a murmur” in the nation, could it be that nations really do get the leaders they deserve?

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Its always been somewhat impossible, to sum up in very few words, what ‘being Canadian’ is .. At the same time, its very simple to identify those who have disqualified themselves or have no idea what a privilege it is to be Canadian.. Its staggering to realize that about 500 to 1000 or so completely immoral crackpots, whether elected politicians, executives, pundits or lobbyists, zealots or stock market thieves.. can infest this country and take it hostage. Really !

I hope there is enough pride and honor, willingness and capability to bash these vicious looters and bullies in the public courts and media. I believe we will have to be smarter, tougher, faster.. and more adaptive and coordinated. We can help advocates like Clayton Ruby and Forest Ethics by groupwork. Shining constant focussed light and information on who these betrayers are. This is already happening in small effective ways. The heat and light has to be turned up. The mass media has to be chastened, stimulated and led by individual and small groups. Bloggers are powerful, so are artists, cartoonists, musicians, poets.. so are children.

I hope that by next year, a series of TV ads will run during the Stanley Cup Playoffs that Identify – Describe – Ridicule – Expose the primary offenders. The same ‘ads’ (actually documentary art) would go viral on the web. Any primary or secondary offender who wishes to withdraw from their dangerous participation against Canadian values and citizens would be released from the spotlight. This aggressive guerrilla activity should re non-partisan & unrelated to Canadian political parties.

Wonderful work is already visible on Youtube and Vimeo etc.. and those brilliant folks should keep illuminating what is at risk across Canada, whether rain forests, pensions, personal freedoms or fresh water. But a new cadre needs to rise and focus on those who threaten.. rather than what is threatened. Let’s shine the light on the criminal, not the crime.. be proactive. After all, they’re already telling us what they intend to do, and that its good for us. That’s what our federal and provincial government is telling the folks in Fort Chipeweyn. Enjoy the water downstream of the tar sands, eat the fish and game too.. and we’ll be poisoning all the wolves, by the way .. to make sure the caribou are A-OK as well.

Joe Oliver needs to be spanked hard and told to go sit in the corner. He should retire or seek help. Peter Mackay will likely retire himself. Kenney, Clement, Fantino, Baird and all the other related riff raff packdogs like Poliviere need to chased off or slapped down hard. Stephen Harper needs to take a close look at the harsh downside of trying to become an emperor. Its not very pretty. The upside is he could ‘be encouraged’ to retire to Ontario and possibly escape complete defamation and humiliation.

I believe there are some among the 500 to 1000 I mentioned earlier that might end up in jail. I suspect Clayton Ruby is looking at things from this perspective. How many laws have been broken ? And, who are the perpetrators. Call the police. Welcome to Kingston Eh !